Learning to Improve Book Resource Operational Systems (LIBROS)
Funded by: USAID
Date Range: 2021-2023
Project Lead: Pulte Institute
Notre Dame Collaborators: Pulte Institute
Contact: Tom Purekal
STUDY OVERVIEW
Books are one of the most cost-effective enablers of children’s school achievement. The goal of the LIBROS study is to assist the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in identifying policy and practice pathways to strengthen the primary education level book supply chains in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) via case studies in Cambodia, Honduras, and Rwanda. To achieve this goal, the LIBROS research team will document policy and practice strategies from the three countries, and the impact of these strategies on primary-level book supply chains. Additionally, SHARE will explore the underlying conditions that enable the success of improvement strategies to identify transferrable lessons for improving book supply chains in other contexts.
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
- What are the characteristics and perceived impacts of a specific strategy designed to improve the book supply chain?
- How and under what conditions was the improvement strategy developed and implemented?
- What challenges were observed and addressed during the process? What additional supports are required for the fuller success of the book chain improvement strategy?
PARTNERSHIP LOCATIONS
Cambodia: Cambodia Development Resource Institute (CDRI)
Honduras: Francisco Morazan National Pedagogical University (UPNFM)
Rwanda: University of Rwanda and Resilient Africa Network (RAN)
METHODS & ANALYSIS
This study will assemble case studies from each study country. Data will be collected through in-person and virtual interviews, email discussions, review of policy documents, and stakeholder workshops. The resulting data will be analyzed to generate rich descriptions of the characteristics of the selected improvement strategy and its perceived impacts on the book supply chain system. Data will also be analyzed to identify critical factors and contextual conditions that contributed to strategic development and implementation of the system, as well as persisting barriers and those that were successfully addressed.
RESEARCH GOALS
- Country-level goal: Identify the characteristics and critical success factors of policy and practice strategies that have resulted in improvements to the primary education level book supply chain within each country of study.
- Cross-country goal: Identify characteristics and critical success factors of successful book supply chain improvement strategies that can be transferable to other LMIC contexts that seek effective policy and practice strategies for the provision of quality book resources for young children.
Learn more by reading the LIBROS Brief
